To the east of present day Great Britain
remains the coast of the European mainland.
This area was inhabited by groups of Germanic
tribes, of which included the Angles, Saxons,
and the Jutes. They were an energetic warriors
and accomplished seamen, but their native
land was arid and quite vulnerable to constant
flooding from the North Sea. By 441, groups
of Angles, Saxons, and Jutes had already
begun to scatter throughout eastern, central,
and southern Britain. The lives of these
Germanic settlers can be characterized as
being tribal, insecure, unmerciful, and dangerous.
In this warrior society, loyalty was honored
by prestigious awards and wealth. During
the forty years after the arrival of St.Augustine
at Britain, Anglo-Saxon kings and their people
began adopting the religion of Christianity.
The Church had a profound effect on the development
of Anglo-Saxon culture. It taught the Anglo-Saxon
how to read and write. Between 867 and 877,
the Vikings invaded England and conquered
virtually all of northeast and central regions
of England. The region fell under Dane law
rather than Anglo-Saxon law that had been
enforced for hundreds of years. The Anglo-Saxons
ruled England for over 600 years and now
are acknowledged as the first "Englishmen".

Anglo Saxon literature refers to
literary writings in Old English dating back from 650 A.D. to
1150 A.D. Old English poetry can be categorized as being heroic
(Germanic myths & custom) or Christian. Virtually all of
what's left of Anglo-Saxon literature is contained in only four
manuscripts. Known scops orally passed down old stories
to future generations. Furthermore, Old English poetry is most
definitely the earliest source of Germanic literature. Because of
that, it is the closest that modern society can come to an
"oral pagan literature" of Germanic culture and also
the most vital source of knowledge of many aspects of Germanic
culture.

The 7th-century work known as Widsth is one of the oldest and earliest Old English poems
known to scholars today and hence, it serves as a historical and
linguistic interests.

Beowulf, a complete
epic, is the first chef-d'oeuvre (masterpiece) in English
literature and the oldest and longest surviving Germanic epic as
well. This makes it the most important poem in Old
English literature. The story of Beowulf came about as a
heathen saga handed down orally from one generation to the next.
The version of Beowulf that is present today was composed by a
Christian poet, probably in the beginning of the eighth century.
The periodical Christian themes in Beowulf, however, are not
connected with the overall pagan tale. Beowulf is
inherently a part of the Anglo-Saxon culture. It is about a
hero's courageous and bloody struggle monsters and glorifies the
virtues of courage, honor, and loyalty in a brutal world. An
underlying feeling in Beowulf is significant in many
poems including Deor, The Wanderer, and The Seafarer. These
works like many other of the time has a theme that contrasts
between a joyful past with a doubtful and a cheerless present.
Other poetic works at the time, which were anonymous, all
emphasize that greatness is measured by unconditional loyalty and
courage instead of just victory.

Old English prose dates back to
the latter part of the Anglo-Saxon period. Prose was originally
written in Latin before the ascension of King Alfred, who worked to revive English culture after the Danish
invasions. Hardly anyone knew how to read Latin texts at the
time, King Alfred worked to translate the most important
Latin texts to "english". Besides doing the hard work
for his country, he also promoted prose writings in the
vernacular, didactic, devotional, and the informative. One of the
most informative works was the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. A
historical record, the Anglo-SaxonChronicle
was probably started in the during King Alfred's time. The two
chief writers of prose AElfric, Abbot of Eynsham, and Wulfstan, Archbishop of York. A large portion of Latin poetry
and prose was written during the Anglo-Saxon period.